Clippings: Paul George says Clippers are in a win-now mentality

Soon enough, Paul George is scheduled to head to Orlando with the rest of the Los Angeles Clippers, but for now he’s savoring family time.

Sabreena covered the Clippers’ efforts to lobby the NBA to allow families to join players on the campus in Orlando sooner, and while they await word, George told comedian Kevin Hart on his show Cold As Balls: Cold Calls from Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud, out Thursday, “I’m living the daddy life. Full daddy life over here.”

George was asked about whether the Clippers were thinking they have a 2-3 year window to win the NBA title or if it’s now or never — the star firmly on the side of win now.

Perhaps in part, it’s due to the injuries he’s sustained over the years, including his horrible broken leg in the summer of 2014.

“That journey was a roller-coaster...Going into that summer, I felt it was another leap year for me,” he said. “And I’ve had injuries during games, I just felt so invincible, nothing could hurt me, nothing could stop me.”

He admits that while he had the belief in himself after returning, he was not at the level right away after such a catastrophic injury.

“I came back that following year and I looked horrible. Self-analysis, I looked horrible. I couldn’t guard nobody, dudes was blowing by me, I couldn’t push off my right leg. But I knew I had my game. I knew I could score, I could shoot, I could defend. All of that felt like it was untouched.”

George also gets in a sly short joke on Hart, which is easy but you gotta have the right timing to do it, and PG-13 had it.

More news for Friday:

• Clippers reportedly book tickets to Orlando: Shams Charania reports the Clippers will go to Florida July 8, coming in the middle of a three-day stretch where all eligible teams will enter the Disney bubble.
• Florida casual approved: Charania also reports modifications to the dress code for Orlando. Doesn’t sound like board shorts and flip-flops will be permitted, but it will definitely be more relaxed.

• Cauley-Stein opts out: Mavericks center Willie Cauley-Stein will not play in the bubble, as he is reportedly expecting his child to be born in July. Trey Burke is expected to replace him on the roster, in a not like-for-like move.
• Ranking Clippers potential playoff opponents: It’s a subjective list, but The Athletic’s Jovan Buha takes a swing at the full Western Conference field in Orlando.
• Only Buffalo players on Clippers’ retired jersey prospect list: The ProHoopsHistory newsletter makes the case for two players for the Buffalo days to get their jerseys retired. Remember, the Clips have yet to ever retire a jersey, and likely won’t until the new arena is built.
• Vince Carter retires: I never would have guessed he would have played a full 22 years in the NBA, but Carter announced Wednesday he’s retired. Will there be a comeback? Given the shape he stayed in and the ability to do what he needed to in order to keep playing, I wouldn’t rule it out.